348 SAVAGE SUDAN 



hardly heavier than quail ; of all these, together with 

 the minor feathered fauna, we treat later. 



SlNKAT 



Our investigations commenced at Sinkat, close by 

 the "Divide" that separates the watersheds of Nile and 

 Red Sea respectively. Sinkat, by the way, became for 

 seven months (in 1883-84) a focal point in the story of 

 British enterprise and of some British bungles ! in the 

 Sudan. With that aspect, however, -we are not concerned. 

 At the date of our arrival (March), a chief characteristic 

 was the ubiquitous evidence of a marvellous bird-migration 

 half the feathered population were hastening past, all 

 in through - transit for Europe. Every bush for miles 

 around seemed filled with British or Europe -bound 

 warblers blackcaps and redstarts, common and lesser 

 whitethroats, Blandford's, orphean, rufous, barred, and 

 garden-warblers silent songsters hastening northwards 

 day by day ; while, high above, the heavens were streaked 

 with files of migrating storks and cranes, and bands of 

 buzzards {Buteo desertorum), all amove. Besides these 

 impetuous travellers daily hurrying past, there were also 

 of course the residents, including lovely creatures such 

 as the rosy-breasted shrike {Rhodophoneus cruentus\ met 

 with here for the first time ; bush-robins, sun-birds, and 

 dozens more I dare not catalogue them here. 1 



Farther afield, on the slopes of the encircling hills, 

 we chanced on charming rock-gardens patches of fawn- 

 coloured sand inset amidst crude black boulders, but 

 adorned with lavender-like shrubs and by the delicate 

 tracery of the acacias, ever graceful albeit somewhat 

 hypocritical in their cruel armour of needle-pointed 



1 I have spoken of "silent songsters." Certain of the above species, 

 however, by intermittent song, proclaimed that they had reached, or were 

 approaching, their incunabula. These included bush-robins, orphean, 

 rufous and Blandford's warblers, also desert-larks, etc. On March igth 

 we found a nest of woodchat (Lantus paradoxus) with five eggs ; another 

 of grey shrike with young (Lantus leuconotus) a week later, besides others. 



